Mystical Marriage: Spiritual Life According to St. Maximos the Confessor

by Aimilianos of Simonopetra, Maximos Constas (Translator)

This book contains six talks by Elder Aimilianos of Simonopetra (Mt Athos), focusing on select passages from the Chapters on Love by St Maximos the Confessor. More than a simple commentary, these talks offer a profound yet approachable introduction to the principles and practice of Orthodox spirituality.

Genres: Christian, Christianity, Nonfiction, Theology

202 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2018

About the author

Aimilianos of Simonopetra, titled as Elder and Archimandrite, was the abbot of Simonopetra Monastery from 1974 to 2000. As a young monk, Elder Aimilianos looked forward to a career as a foreign missionary. Assigned to a monastery, the Elder experienced a spiritual crisis from which he emerged a man, supremely energized, and dedicated to revitalization of monastic life.

Reviews

[Jonathan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was written by a saint.

[w gall · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Elder addresses his fellow monks, interpreting a few verses of St. Maximus the Confessor's Centuries on Love. He interprets St. Maximus as pointing us to the top of Mt. Everest, so to speak, excluding all those who have not reached the summit from the ranks of the lovers of God, though toward the end of the book this is qualified (and then reaffirmed at the very end). While there are many insights to be gleaned in the book, I feel that while the book may be suitable for monks, for laypeople, not so much.

[Ted · Rating 4 out of 5]

For whatever reason I felt the book itself was somehow beautiful, and it was very insightful on so many levels. I am not a monastic, and like most of these spiritual books in Orthodoxy they are written by monastics and for monastics - the non-monastic can get what they can from the book but can never really fully appreciate the experience. There are certain aspects of the monastic tradition that do not speak to me, and some parts seem dubious to me. For example, Amilianos writes: "Marriage was established because Adam sinned. It was not God who wanted marriage, but rather man who wanted it. Adam fell and God gave him marriage as a gift. ... And when the Fathers compare virginity with marriage, one says that the the two are as far apart as heaven and earth, while another might say they are as far apart as God and man..." His comment (and as much as it represents the official Orthodox or monastic understanding) is hard to reconcile with the Scriptures in which in the beginning God makes them male and female and unites the two in one flesh. In Genesis it is God not Adam who decides it is not good for the man to be alone. God seems to have foreordained marriage before the fall and not a response to the fall. Monastic theology of marriage is based on the notion that marriage is given only because of the fall, and therefore all sexual relationship is justified only by procreation. Thus sex outside of procreation is an abuse.

[Dannelle Kouf · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is not about marriage but rather our spiritual lives and our relationship to Christ after becoming a believer. This is not a book for a new believer. Saint maximos was addressing monks, so some of the things he discusses do not directly relate to a normal person living outside of a monestary. However, I have found it helpful and thought-provoking. Will read it again.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent, inspiring, practical, challenging, full of love and grace, highly recommended!

[Christian A Moulton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just excellent.

[Joshua Finch]

Shows the beauty of monastic simplicity and austerity.

Sometimes he seems to speak in riddles, I think for two reasons. First this is a written translation of talks he gave to an audience of monks, speaking in Greek. So probably some monastic inside knowledge is a good pre-requisite. Specifically how the fathers define and see the passions, you are better off learning for the first time in a more introductory work. Then the translator's work load looks very heavy in certain parts (especially bottom of pg 144 about union with God), where Fr. Aimiliano's theological knowledge is more directly and technically expressed. And second I would guess that it's intentional to some degree even for monks. Reading / hearing such enigmatic but understandable and forceful statements leaves you time with the fallen part of yourself that rebels against the truth of what he's saying just because he's reduced verbal precision and technical detail for a very rhetorically powerful simplicity. The time it takes your reason to assemble the basic intelligibility of what he's saying, will be the time the rest of you recovers from the collision with the truth, due to being unguarded by reason, and so you can come back stronger from the struggle.

The most valuable part to me is where Fr. Aimilianos describes in detail the proper functioning of reason and the mind, two distinct aspects of the intellectual faculty of the human, and describes where each is directed / what it's doing in that direction when they're functioning right, or likewise when malfunctioning.